During Travis Flower’s senior year as an undergraduate student at Arkansas Tech University in 2010-11, he was president of the Student Government Association and winner of the Alfred J. Crabaugh Award as the most outstanding senior male student on campus.

It would be fair to say that his leadership qualities and willingness to give of his time to help others made him a “big man on campus.”

And yet, he still benefited from the same one-on-one faculty attention that Arkansas Tech students from every walk of life often refer to as one of the university’s greatest strengths.

“When I was an undergraduate student, I was a journalism student with an emphasis in public relations,” said Flower, who is originally from Harrison. “Dr. Hanna Norton was my advisor. Anytime I had any questions about graduate school applications, she was willing to help me in any way that she could in terms of my resume or autobiographical sketch … anything that the graduate school application was requesting. I had never done any of those things, so she was a huge asset for me in helping me get prepared for graduate school.

“The public relations program — and the journalism program in general at Arkansas Tech — is challenging, yet it is rewarding,” continued Flower. “It gives you a good grasp of how to write and the other skills that you will need in graduate school or the work force.”

Now Flower is back at Arkansas Tech, albeit in a different role.

Flower is completing a Master of Public Administration degree from Arkansas State University in Jonesboro. As part of his degree requirements, he is serving an internship during the final semester of his graduate work. He chose to serve that internship in the Office of the President at Arkansas Tech.

“With the current internship, Dr. (Robert C.) Brown and Mrs. Julie Morgan have given me a great opportunity to work on special projects and special events,” said Flower. “I hope to gain a greater understanding of how higher education administration works and what all is entailed in working with a state-supported university as opposed to a privately-funded university.”

Flower said that not much has changed in terms of the atmosphere on campus during his 18 months away.

“I’ve really enjoyed being back at Tech,” said Flower. “I didn’t really know a lot of people in Jonesboro. I got involved in a few things, but coming back to Russellville was pretty much coming back home. Being able to come back, walk across campus and see people I recognized was great. The size of Tech is perfect because when you walk across campus, you know people. I was glad that the campus here had the same feel that I remembered.”

Through his graduate work at Arkansas State, Flower has gained a deeper understanding of how various aspects of society are interconnected and how those varied entities can come together to solve problems.

“Through my master’s degree work I’ve learned a lot about non-profit organizations and governmental agencies,” said Flower. “I’ve been gaining an understanding of how the non-profit and governmental worlds work and how they differ from the corporate sector. You usually just think about the government when you consider public administration, but it entails a lot more. It includes higher education and a variety of not-for-profit groups, all of which operate differently depending upon their size and location.

“It was a really good opportunity to work with some non-profit organizations during my time at Arkansas State,” continued Flower. “I was able to understand what needs there are in the non-profit community — the ones that are and are not being met — and what is being done to help meet those needs.”

With graduation from Arkansas State with his master’s degree on the horizon in May, Flower is starting to think about what might be next.

“I haven’t nailed down anything specific, but I do like higher education administration and I love Arkansas Tech,” said Flower. “If an opportunity came about here, it would be very difficult for me to turn that down after all of the other opportunities that Tech has already given me. I’ve thought about some private, non-profit foundations as well as some for-profit organizations. I’ll just see where the future leads me.”